Picking the Best of the Best: Awesome 2015 Non-Fiction Books

22 December 2015

Of the 137 books I picked up this year (inclusive of DNFs), 36 were non-fiction--not actually as many as I would have expected, given how many of those slim pickings were truly stand-outs. Perhaps I've just gotten better at picking what non-fiction will work for me? Regardless, here were a few of my favorites:

Hammer Head: The Making of a Carpenter, by Nina MacLaughlin: Though memoir has never been my most favorite of subjects, I stumbled on a slew of smart lady writers this year who proved to me that memoir can be so much more than what I thought it could be. MacLaughlin was one of those. Hammer Head is a thoughtful, reflective piece on the nature of work and happiness and how the two are inextricably linked. (My review)

H is for Hawk, by Helen Macdonald: I never found the right words to use to review this book--not because it is not worthy of many (many) words of praise, but because none of my words felt right in explaining Macdonald's. H is for Hawk lives somewhere between the world of memoir and history, a study of falconry and T.E. White's midguided time as a falconer and Macdonald's own experience raising a goshawk in the wake of her father's unexpected death. It's stunning.

Backlist (Published in 2014 or earlier):

At Home: A History of Private Life, by Bill Bryson: I haven't written much about this yet as I haven't quite finished it yet, but I'm furious with the bookish community for not insisting I read it sooner. It's the perfect combination of history and etymology and it is ringing ALL MY BELLS. I'm loaded up with trivia on everything from the history of the hallway to why we call milk products "dairy" products and I love every bit of it. (Thanks to the Read Harder Challenge for finally encouraging me to read this, after receiving a copy as a Christmas gift from my literary-minded aunt YEARS ago.)

The Underground Girls of Kabul, by Jenny Nordberg: This was a pick in the "Our Women, Our World" book club I participated in through my local bookstore, and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. Nordberg's account of girls being dressed as boys in Afghanistan deals in heavy subjects--gender identity, social constructs, totalitarian regimes--but does so in a way that makes every topic feel relatable and approachable. I learned a lot about a subject I didn't even know I was interested in with this book; I'd say that's a fairly impressive outcome, myself.

Yes Please, by Amy Poehler: What is there to say about Poehler's memoir but that it is one that must be read? Best consumed on audio, with Poehler narrating her own work, this ranks up there with Bossypants in the realm of celebrity-memoirs-turned-personal-essays-with-a-point.

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What am I missing? What are your favorite non-fiction reads this year??